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The University of Utah Athletics
Photo by: Don Liebig/Dig Magazine
Kyle Whittingham Weekly Press Conference (Aug. 30)
8/30/2021 12:29 PM | Football
Utah hosts Weber State on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. from Rice-Eccles Stadium
SALT LAKE CITY - University of Utah head football coach Kyle Whittingham met with members of the media on Monday morning inside the Spence and Cleone Eccles Football Center. The full press conference can be viewed here, and selected quotes from Coach Whittingham follow.
The Utes begin their 128th season of football when they host the Weber State Wildcats to kick off the 2021 season in Rice-Eccles Stadium on Thursday, Sept. 2. The game is slated for a 5:30 p.m. MT start on Pac-12 Networks.
Opening Statement
"Looking forward to getting the season underway. Really excited to get back in the stadium with our fans. That was one of the biggest things last year with COVID, playing in empty stadiums. It's going to be great to get our fans back in there. I'm excited about the new additions to the stadium and know the fans will love it as well. I'm excited to see what kind of team we've got, first and foremost, and find out where we're at as a football team. Weber State is a good team, a playoff team in FCS every single year. [Head coach] Jay Hill has done a great job there. They're a team that is well-coached, very sound fundamentally, technique-wise, schematically. They're a very good team. We're excited to get the season underway, see what we've got and go from there."
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On Charlie Brewer winning the starting quarterback job…
"He had the edge statistically, first of all. That's not the only thing you take into account, but he did have a slight edge statistically. He's a guy that has a lot of leadership. It was a close call; it was so close it could've gone either way. But Charlie's experience having played over 40 Division I games, and the success he had at Baylor throwing the football. I believe our team would've been fine with whichever guy won the job. They're both very well-respected, hard workers, they prepare the way you're supposed to. It was really close, but ultimately for Charlie, the experience factor was probably the biggest reason."
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On the plan at running back heading into Weber State…
"We have a plan in mind to play them all and give them all carries, and opportunities to show what they can do. Each have their strengths, and the flow of the game will dictate a lot of that. But we know they're all going to get playing time, they'll all get carries unless something unforeseen happens. We'll see what the production level is and go from there as far as moving forward with a depth chart."
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On what he's learned about Charlie Brewer since he arrived at Utah…
"He's poised, calm under pressure, he goes through his read progression very quickly. He's decisive and gets the ball out of his hand quickly. He's an accurate thrower, good pocket presence. He can sense the rush and move around in the pocket the way you want a quarterback to. He's got escapability. Both him and Cam are very mobile quarterbacks. Probably the main thing we've seen is decision-making. He's a great decision-maker."
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On pass protection status amidst injuries on the offensive line…
"You're always better off with your best five guys. That's not going to be the case this week, but if you're out there, you gotta get the job done. We've talked about the depth of the O-Line all fall camp and ever since last spring. Fortunately, that depth is going to help us in this game here because we're going to need to draw up on that. We feel like we'll be in good shape. We've got 10, 11 guys that we think are really good players and ready to play in the Pac-12 now. Not all of those guys are available this week; that's the challenge. But we've got enough and we should be fine."
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On having close ties to the Weber State coaching staff…
"I would say the game itself, there's no effect. But you're right, we do have a lot of common ground between the two teams. A lot of guys who either played or coached here are at Weber right now. I'm looking forward to seeing those guys. Robert Conley, Joe Dale and the guys we haven't seen for quite a while. It's always good to see Jay [Hill]. You mentioned Gary [Andersen] will be there now. No effect on the game, but it'll be good to see those guys."
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On honoring Ty Jordan during the 2021 season…
"There's several ways we're going to honor Ty, and you'll see them as the season unfolds. The representative of the Ty Jordan Scholarship will be announced this week. We've got quite a few things. The marketing staff will handle the in-game stuff. But there will be several ways that we recognize Ty and honor him this season."
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On if a certain part of the team is further ahead than expected…
"I don't think there's been any surprises either way. I think things have progressed and unfolded about how we had thought. I think one thing that's for certain is the transfer portal players are going to be instrumental in what we do this year. Theo Howard has proven to be a very good addition. Obviously Charlie Brewer, the two backs, those transfer portal guys we think are going to be very impactful for us."
Â
On status of the pass game…
"We feel we're in a good place in that regard. Of course the proof will be what happens in the game. We'll see where we're at, but we know we need to throw the ball more efficiently than we have in order to take that next step. We've worked hard towards that end and we'll hopefully start to see some of that manifest on Thursday night."
Â
On evaluating wide receiver Devaughn Vele…
"He's had an excellent fall camp. He's a big, athletic receiver, 6-foot-4 about 205 pounds. He runs a 4.5 and is very acrobatic. Good body control. We expect him to be one of our primary receivers. We've got four, five of those guys who are going to be the primary targets, and he's one of them."
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The Utes begin their 128th season of football when they host the Weber State Wildcats to kick off the 2021 season in Rice-Eccles Stadium on Thursday, Sept. 2. The game is slated for a 5:30 p.m. MT start on Pac-12 Networks.
Opening Statement
"Looking forward to getting the season underway. Really excited to get back in the stadium with our fans. That was one of the biggest things last year with COVID, playing in empty stadiums. It's going to be great to get our fans back in there. I'm excited about the new additions to the stadium and know the fans will love it as well. I'm excited to see what kind of team we've got, first and foremost, and find out where we're at as a football team. Weber State is a good team, a playoff team in FCS every single year. [Head coach] Jay Hill has done a great job there. They're a team that is well-coached, very sound fundamentally, technique-wise, schematically. They're a very good team. We're excited to get the season underway, see what we've got and go from there."
Â
On Charlie Brewer winning the starting quarterback job…
"He had the edge statistically, first of all. That's not the only thing you take into account, but he did have a slight edge statistically. He's a guy that has a lot of leadership. It was a close call; it was so close it could've gone either way. But Charlie's experience having played over 40 Division I games, and the success he had at Baylor throwing the football. I believe our team would've been fine with whichever guy won the job. They're both very well-respected, hard workers, they prepare the way you're supposed to. It was really close, but ultimately for Charlie, the experience factor was probably the biggest reason."
Â
On the plan at running back heading into Weber State…
"We have a plan in mind to play them all and give them all carries, and opportunities to show what they can do. Each have their strengths, and the flow of the game will dictate a lot of that. But we know they're all going to get playing time, they'll all get carries unless something unforeseen happens. We'll see what the production level is and go from there as far as moving forward with a depth chart."
Â
On what he's learned about Charlie Brewer since he arrived at Utah…
"He's poised, calm under pressure, he goes through his read progression very quickly. He's decisive and gets the ball out of his hand quickly. He's an accurate thrower, good pocket presence. He can sense the rush and move around in the pocket the way you want a quarterback to. He's got escapability. Both him and Cam are very mobile quarterbacks. Probably the main thing we've seen is decision-making. He's a great decision-maker."
Â
On pass protection status amidst injuries on the offensive line…
"You're always better off with your best five guys. That's not going to be the case this week, but if you're out there, you gotta get the job done. We've talked about the depth of the O-Line all fall camp and ever since last spring. Fortunately, that depth is going to help us in this game here because we're going to need to draw up on that. We feel like we'll be in good shape. We've got 10, 11 guys that we think are really good players and ready to play in the Pac-12 now. Not all of those guys are available this week; that's the challenge. But we've got enough and we should be fine."
Â
On having close ties to the Weber State coaching staff…
"I would say the game itself, there's no effect. But you're right, we do have a lot of common ground between the two teams. A lot of guys who either played or coached here are at Weber right now. I'm looking forward to seeing those guys. Robert Conley, Joe Dale and the guys we haven't seen for quite a while. It's always good to see Jay [Hill]. You mentioned Gary [Andersen] will be there now. No effect on the game, but it'll be good to see those guys."
Â
On honoring Ty Jordan during the 2021 season…
"There's several ways we're going to honor Ty, and you'll see them as the season unfolds. The representative of the Ty Jordan Scholarship will be announced this week. We've got quite a few things. The marketing staff will handle the in-game stuff. But there will be several ways that we recognize Ty and honor him this season."
Â
On if a certain part of the team is further ahead than expected…
"I don't think there's been any surprises either way. I think things have progressed and unfolded about how we had thought. I think one thing that's for certain is the transfer portal players are going to be instrumental in what we do this year. Theo Howard has proven to be a very good addition. Obviously Charlie Brewer, the two backs, those transfer portal guys we think are going to be very impactful for us."
Â
On status of the pass game…
"We feel we're in a good place in that regard. Of course the proof will be what happens in the game. We'll see where we're at, but we know we need to throw the ball more efficiently than we have in order to take that next step. We've worked hard towards that end and we'll hopefully start to see some of that manifest on Thursday night."
Â
On evaluating wide receiver Devaughn Vele…
"He's had an excellent fall camp. He's a big, athletic receiver, 6-foot-4 about 205 pounds. He runs a 4.5 and is very acrobatic. Good body control. We expect him to be one of our primary receivers. We've got four, five of those guys who are going to be the primary targets, and he's one of them."
Â
Players Mentioned
QB
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WR
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